Woodstown’s Battavio becomes Wolverines’ all-time leading scorer in girls basketball; Schalick, Penns Grove girls fall short after rallying to get back in their game; Salem boys to play for TCC B Flight title

TCC GIRLS TOURNAMENT
Washington Twp. 46, Woodstown 39
Clearview 65, Pennsville 46
Delsea 42, Penns Grove 39
Deptford 44, Schalick 41
Highland 63, Salem Tech 38
TCC BOYS TOURNAMENT
Salem 88, Gloucester Catholic 76
Woodstown 69, Penns Grove 41

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

SEWELL – Back when she was a middle schooler Talia Battavio can remember walking into the Woodstown gym to watch the players she looked up to as a young basketball player, glancing at the banner with all the school’s big scorers on it and thinking how neat it would be to have her name on the list someday.

She earned her place on the big board last year when she hit 1,000 points, but now she’s moved all the way to the top of it.

Battavio hit a 3-pointer early in the third quarter Thursday night to become Woodstown’s all-time leading scorer in girls basketball. Sadly, the emotion of the milestone wasn’t enough to carry the Wolverines to victory and they fell to second-seeded Washington Twp. 46-39 in the Tri-County Conference A Flight semifinals.

“I don’t think it’s like really hit me yet; I think when the season’s over (it will),” she said. “But it’s a big accomplishment and I couldn’t have done it without my teammates and all my coaches who have gotten me to where I am today. It is a huge accomplishment and I’ve very grateful.”

The Goldey-Beacom signee needed seven points to pass Tori Smick as Woodstown’s all-time leading scorer in the girls game, but said she wasn’t even thinking about it as the game got underway. In fact, she admitted being surprised when they called time to recognize the feat.

She tied the record in a low-scoring first half and had to sit on it through halftime. She reset the standard that stood for 12 years in typical Talia fashion, hitting a 3-pointer from the left corner 25 seconds into the third quarter. More than one-third of her career points have come from behind the 3-point arc.

“On my 1,000th, I hit it on a foul shot, so I think it was pretty cool for (the record-breaking points) to be a 3-pointer,” she said.

Battavio finished with 24 points in the game and now has 1,584 points for her career. The only player in school history with more points is boys leading scorer Joe Hickman, who wrapped up his 1,726-point career in 1972.

She is now the fifth leading scorer in Salem County girls history, having also surpassed Schalick’s Tia Furbush on the county girls list. No. 4 is Salem’s Brittany Smith (1623), a rung on the ladder Battavio could reach in the upcoming South Jersey Group I tournament.

“I remember going to the high school games in middle school and I told myself, I would look at the banner and I knew I was going to do it,” she said. “Really, just (for) the thousand, but this was like the cherry on top. This was a really big accomplishment for me.”

Battavio has always been a scorer. She dropped 260 points as a freshman, 395 as a sophomore and made a big move last season with 539., getting both her 100th 3-pointer and 1,000th career point. She also has 183 3-pointers, more than 230 assists and is closing in on 200 steals.

“Talia is a great player,” Woodstown coach Matt Smart said. “Credit has to go to her family, also to (her coaches) and all the teammates that have come before her, and she’ll tell you that. It is an individual record, but she didn’t do it all. There are lots of people along the way who have helped her.

“My favorite part of the night was when she got it, and it was a big shot in the game, seeing all the other girls go up and hug her and congratulate her. Talia, all year, through the ups and downs, never lost her confidence. She’s never afraid to shoot the ball and I’ll never take that away from her. When she has the ball in her hands and she’s shooting it, we’re confident it has a pretty good shot of going in.

“It’s incredible to see her growth throughout her hs career. I saw her play her freshman, sophomore and junior years and now having the blessing and opportunity to be her coach, she’s great.”

But she isn’t the only Woodstown player chasing history. Her running mate, the other half of the Wolverines’ dynamic duo, Megan Donelson, likely will pass Smick as well. She’s sitting at 1,548 points.

Now that record is squared away, Battavio’s mindset going forward is “focusing on going far.” The Wolverines open the South Jersey Group I Tournament next week as the No. 4 seed hosting Gateway. Barring upsets along the way, their path to the Final Four will run through Audubon, Haddon Twp. and Wildwood.

“I’m just playing basketball,” she said. “I’m letting my shots come to me and not forcing anything. However (the point total) ends up it ends up.”

The loss Thursday night snapped a six-game winning streak. The Wolverines trailed 18-16 at halftime. They missed an agonizing number of shots around the basket and Washington Twp. started pulling away.

“When we play these bigger group schools … it’s obviously a test for us and a challenge where we’re playing a more physical style basketball and we have to step up to the challenge,” Smart said. “Sometimes we do a very good job of doing that and then there are other times that we struggle.

“I never question the girls desire to win the game, but we have to find a way to get shots to fall under the basket under pressure and tonight was just a night they weren’t falling. We took good quality shots, they just weren’t falling.”

Alaina LaMonica hit five 3-pointers and led the Minutemaids (18-5) with 21 points. They now play top-seeded Gloucester Catholic (21-4) for the A Flight championship.

WASHINGTON TWP. 46, WOODSTOWN 39
WOODSTOWN (17-6) – Talia Battavio 8 6-6 24, Megan Donelson 3 3-4 9, Kyia Leyman 1 2-5 4, Emma Perry 1 0-0 2, Gianna Maiorini 0 0-0 0, Lauren Hengel 0 0-0 0, Ryann Foote 0 0-0 0. Totals 13 11-15 39. WASHINGTON TWP. (17-7) – Leah Roe 1 0-0 2, Shyla McLean 1 1-2 4, Frankie Begley 3 0-0 6, Elena Dabrowski 1 1-1 3, Kate D’Ottaviano 4 2-4 10, Alaina LaMonica 7 2-3 21. Totals 17 6-10 46.

Woodstown	4	12	10	13-	39
Washington Twp.	9	9	16	12-	46

DEPTFORD 44, SCHALICK 41: The Cougars rallied from a 10-point halftime deficit with a strong second half. They had a chance to tie the C Flight semifinal in the final 15 seconds but missed two layups.

“We played a great second half (with) much more energy and up tempo, more confident,” Cougars coach John Whalen said.

A pair of freshmen led the comeback. Olivia Vanacker scored all 10 of her points in the second half, with Nevaeh Robinson tossing in eight of her team-high 12.

SCHALICK (6-17) – Cali Fisler 0 4-6 4, Ava Scurry 2 1-5 5, Abby Willoughby 0 1-2 1, Olivia Vanacker 4 2-2 10, Nevaeh Robinson 5 2-2 12, Willow Davis 2 2-3 7, Carly Vicente 1 0-0 2. Totals 14 12-19 41.
DEPTFORD (10-12) – Kylie Galantic 0, Rachel Farr 0, Zakyah Babb 2, Chaylin Morina 13, Brenna Ivey 7, McKenna Crowley 9, Madeline Anderson 6, Sanai Green 7.

Schalick	9	6	16	10-	41
Deptford	10	15	11	7-	44

HIGHLAND 63, SALEM TECH 38: The Tartans got big games from Sage Shaw and Tajai Webb to snap a five-game losing streak and score their second win of the season. Shaw scored 30 points and grabbed 30 rebounds, and Webb scored 20 points.

Shelby Liber hit four of Salem Tech’s seven 3-pointers and led the Chargers with 12 points.

HIGHLAND (2-23) – Tajai Webb 9 0-0 20, Sage Shaw 12 6-12 30, Yoselin Basantes 0 0-0 0, Christiana Crawford 1 0-0 2, Wilkaliry Rodriguez 0 0-0 0, Samantha Mattia 3 0-0 6, Keymiyah Shinholster 2 0-0 5. Totals 27 6-12 63.
SALEM TECH (2-20) – Kaylin Beardsley 1 2-4 4, Hannah Dewitt 0 2-2 2, Rylee Doerr 1 0-0 2, Demajae White 2 0-0 4, Shelby Drummond 3 0-0 8, Shelby Liber 4 0-0 12, Tiara Bazemore 1 0-0 3, Amora Delaine 1 1-4 3. Totals 13 5-10 38.

Highland	15	17	21	10-	63
Salem Tech	11	8	8	11-	38

CLEARVIEW 65, PENNSVILLE 46: Juliette Mirigliani hit career-high seven 3-pointers on the way to a career-high 38 points and the Pioneers held two of Pennsville’s top three scorers to five points each to win the A Flight consolation game. Mirigliani, a junior, has scored 65 points in the Pioneers’ two tournament games. 

Taylor Bass led Pennsville with 17 points. The Pioneers held 1,000-point scorers Marley Wood and Nora Ausland to five points each.

PENNSVILLE (17-9) – Taylor Bass 5 6-6 17, Marley Wood 2 0-0 5, Nora Ausland 2 0-0 5, Addie Johnston 5 0-0 12, Izzy Saulin 1 0-0 2, Jaida Burns 2 1-2 5, Ashlyn Fredo 0 0-0 0. Totals 17 7-8 46. 
CLEARVIEW (13-11) – Hannah Meloro 0 0-0 0, Hannan Richman 0 0-0 0, Sienna Maysonet 0 0-0 0, Claudia Webb 2 102 3, Alessia Lombardi 2 3-4 7, Leah Kelly 0 0-0 0, Cameron McGovern 0 0-0 0, Brett Foster 2 0-0 4, Jilian Guzzardo 4 1-1 11, Casey Maxwell 1 0-0 2, Juliette Mirigliani 15 1-2 38. Totals 26 6-9 65.

Pennsville	9	11	15	11-	46
Clearview	24	12	13	16-	65

DELSEA 42, PENNS GROVE 39: The Red Devils came from 13 points down in the first half to turn this B Flight semifinal into a battle, but just couldn’t finish it off at the end.

Penns Grove trailed 24-11 in the second quarter, but rallied behind RaNiyah Wilson and JaNiyah Cummings to cut its deficit to six at halftime. The Red Devils ramped up their defense in the second half and eventually took their first lead of the game on a layup by Wilson with 1:22 left in the third quarter.

A 3-pointer by Wilson gave Penns Grove a 36-33 lead with 5:13 to play, but Delsea scored the next eight points and never trailed again. Another 3 by Wilson with 56 seconds to go made it 41-39. Delsea tried to help the Red Devils by missing five of six free throws in the final 42 seconds, but the Red Devils were denied on a layup and had another shot rim out leaving them only a desperation heave at the buzzer that hit the backboard.

Wilson finished with a game-high 19 points. Cummings had 15.

Delsea	16	8	8	10-	42
Penns Grove	8	10	11	10-	39

Boys
Complete game carries Salem to final

GLOUCESTER CITY – The Rams played perhaps their most complete game of the year in beating Gloucester Catholic for the third time this season, 88-76, for a spot in the B Flight title game as the No. 8 seed.

“Tonight was the first game we played 32 minutes; we played very well,” Salem coach Anthony Farmer said after securing career win No. 98. “Followed the game plan, executed the game plan, played hard and played together. I was really, really impressed with our win tonight.”

The Rams (13-12) scored 20 points or more in every quarter. Eight players scored and six had eight points or more.

Xavier McGriff led the offense with 23 points. Antwuan Rogers had a double-double with 13 points and 13 rebounds. Deshaan Williams had 12 points and eight rebounds. Darrelle Johnston had six points, seven rebounds and seven assists. Joe Tunis had 10 points and seven boards, and senior transfer Azhone Burden had what Farmer called “his best all-around night in a Rams uniform,” with nine points, seven rebounds, three assists and two steals.

GC’s Carlos Mendez led all scorers with 34 points. Jack Mustaro, their all-time leading scorer, had 18.

Salem will play at Glassboro, the No. 6 seed, for the B Flight title. The game is scheduled for Saturday, but because of an apparent conflict at Glassboro, the game is tentatively set for Friday.

The teams played earlier this season with the Bulldogs winning 76-62, but the Rams didn’t have Rogers that night. The junior post was in Texas on a football trip, but he’ll be fully available for this one. They’ll also have leading scorer Tymear Lecator back after serving his two-game penalty from last week’s ejection.

SALEM (13-12) – Donovan Weathers 3 1-2 7, Xavier McGriff 9 2-4 23, Neziah Spence 2 3-4 8, Deshaan Williams 5 2-3 12, Darrelle Johnson 2 2-2 6, Joe Tunis 3 3-4 10, Antwuan Rogers 6 1-1 13, Azhone Burden 4 1-1 9. Totals 34 15-22 88.
GLOUCESTER CATHOLIC (11-15) – Carlos Mendez 11 8-10 34, Jack Mustaro 6 2-2 18, Gary Connelly 1 0-0 3, Ben Cook 2 2-2 6, Jack Pund 2 0-0 4, Ehthan Dugue 4 1-2 10, Kamani Pyram 0 1-2 1. Totals 26 14-18 76.

Salem	22	21	20	25-	88
Gloucester Catholic	18	7	18	33-	76

WOODSTOWN 69, PENNS GROVE 41: After losing to the Red Devils twice earlier this season, the Wolverines came out hungry and added more fuel to the adage that it’s difficult to beat a team three times in a season.

The Wolverines placed three scorers in double figures. Rocco String dominated inside with 24 points, M.J. Hall gave them 19 and Blake Bialecki had 12.

After the teams played a tight first quarter, the Wolverines pulled away with a 15-7 second and extended their lead with a 19-9 third. String scored 14 points in the first half. Hall had 11 in the third quarter and 17 in the second half.

“We’re in playoff mode,” Woodstown coach Ramon Roots said. 

PENNS GROVE (11-13) – B.J. Robbins 2 1-2 6, Roman Gipson 3 2-4 9, Karon Ceaser 5 0-0 12, Antione Robinson 1 2-2 4, Haneef Frisby 2 0-0 4, Luis Colon 0 1-2 1, Zane Thomas 1 0-2 2, Will Roy 0 0-0 0, Carson Pearsall 0 1-2 1, Geonni Conrad 1 0-0 2, Mishawn Brantley 0 0-0 0, Jeremy Costacamps 0 0-0 0. Totals 15 7-14 41.
WOODSTOWN (15-9) – Elijah Caesar 2 0-1 5, Blake Bialecki 5 1-1 12, Alejandro Vazquez 0 0-0 0, M.J. Hall 8 2-3 19, Garrett Leyman 4 1-2 9, Rocco String 11 2-10 24, Jalen Markward 0 0-0 0. Totals 30 6-17 69.

Penns Grove	14	7	9	11-	41
Woodstown	18	15	19	17-	69

Motivated Salem was the only Salem County boys team to emerge victorious from Tuesday’s opening round of the Tri-County Conference Tournament

TRI COUNTY BOYS TOURNAMENT
Flight A
Overbrook 59, Deptford Twp. 49
Pitman 52, Delsea 41
Timber Creek 58, Woodstown 49
Kingsway 73, Penns Grove 43
Flight B
Salem 57, Clearview 44
Gloucester Catholic 50, Triton 48
Glassboro 54, Williamstown 41
Highland 42, Washington Twp. 37
Flight C
Cumberland 67, Schalick 45
Wildwood 86, Pennsville 35 
GCIT 86, Salem Tech 18
THURSDAY’S GAMES
Flight A
(4) Pitman at at (1) Overbrook
(3) Timber Creek at (2) Kingsway
Flight B
(8) Salem at (5) Gloucester Catholic
(7) Highland at (6) Glassboro
Flight C
(5) Cumberland at (1) Clayton
(3) Wildwood  at (2) GCIT

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

MULLICA HILL – The last kind of team anybody wants to play in a tournament setting is one with nothing to lose and everything to prove.

Salem has been playing with an us-against-the-world mindset for the last month or so and Tuesday added another notch in its belt, knocking off adjusted top-seed Clearview 57-44 in the opening round of B Flight play in the Tri-County Conference Tournament.

The Rams (12-12) have been facing an uphill climb since mid-January when the NJSIAA ruled they had played an ineligible player and stripped them of four victories. That created a cascade of challenges that left a 15-win team on the floor to be seeded eighth in the second tier bracket of their conference tournament and No. 11 in the upcoming South Jersey Group I tournament.

In addition, they had to play Tuesday without leading scorer Tymear Lecator, serving the first of a two-game suspension for his ejection in the Penns Grove game, which would have been coach Anthony Farmer’s 100th career coaching win without the NJSIAA ruling.

“We’re keeping receipts,” Farmer said. “We’re definitely playing it to the tee, playing it up. It’s us against everyone, no one’s going to give us anything, everyone’s against us, we’ve got to go take it.

“We’re embracing it. Nothing has gone our way this year, but that’s life. That’s adversity. Life is adversity. Basketball teaches you how to deal with that. We’ve been facing adversity all year, but it’s how you respond to it.”

The Rams showed they meant business right from the start Tuesday night, holding their hosts to two points in the first quarter and opening an 11-2 lead.

Neziah Spence led the Rams’ offense with 17 points. Deshaan Williams had 13 points, 10 rebounds and two steals. Darrelle Johnson grabbed 10 rebounds and dished five assists. Xavier McGriff had eight points, eight boards and three steals. Joe Tunis brought energy for 11 points, five rebounds and three steals.

“When one guy guys goes, I know it’s a cliché, but it gives other guys opportunity to step up,” Farmer said. “That’s what this is about. We’ve been preaching the brotherhood all year, picking each other up.”

This year’s TCC B Flight has become a flight of fancy with all four lower seeds pulling off road “upsets” in the opening round. The Rams now travel to fifth-seeded Gloucester Catholic, one of those teams seeded ahead of them they have already beaten twice this season.

“We’re just trying to get better and hit our stride at the right time and win three, four in a row next week when it really matters,” Farmer said.

SALEM 57, CLEARVIEW 44
SALEM (12-12): Donovan Weathers 2 0-0 4, Xavier McGriff 4 0-0 8, Neziah Spence 6 2-2 17, Deshaan Williams 6 1-1 13, Darrelle Johnson 2 0-0 4, Antwuan Rogers 0 0-0 0, Joe Tunis 4 3-3 11. Totals 24 6-6 57.
CLEARVIEW (9-16): Luke Andres 7 2-2 19, J.D. Steidle 0 0-0 0, Jake Flotter 2 1-2 5, Jonah Turner 2 4-4 8, Georgie Kritikson 1 1-2 3, Luke Zuba 3 2-2 9, Brady Medel 0 0-0 0. Totals 15 10-12 44.

Salem	11	14	15	17-	57
Clearview	2	14	10	18-	44

KINGSWAY 73, PENNS GROVE 43
PENNS GROVE (11-12): Karon Ceaser 1 1-2 4, Luis Colon 1 2-4 4, Jeremy Costacamps 1 2-2 4, Roman Gipson 0 1-2 1, Carson Pearsall 2 4-4 9, Antoine Robinson 1 0-0 2, B.J. Robbins 2 2-2 6, Will Roy 6 0-0 13, Totals 14 12-16 43.
KINGSWAY (21-4): Dasir Williams-Ray 5 0-0 10, Brady Shelton 1 0-0 2, Mike Hart 5 4-4 15, Abdulai Bayraytay 1 0-2 3, Maurice Tavares 4 0-0 9, Luca Kuzmick 1 0-0 3, Terrence Collier 1 0-0 2, J.D. Johnson 1 0-0 2, Owen Ellison 1 2-2 5, Dylan Lewis 1 0-0 3, Czar Witherspoon 4 1-2 9, Richmond 2 0-0 4, Kai Tolley 3 0-0 6. Totals 30 7-10 73.

Penns Grove	4	6	10	23-	43
Kingsway	16	23	18	16-	73

TIMBER CREEK 58, WOODSTOWN 49
WOODSTOWN (14-9): Elijah Caesar 1 0-0 2, Blake Bialecki 4 2-2 12, Alejandro Vazquez 3 1-1 9, M.J. Hall 4 0-1 8, Garrett Leyman 2 4-7 8, Rocco String 4 2-3 10, Jalen Markward 0 0-0 0. Totals 18 9-14 49.
TIMBER CREEK (16-7): Asa Wharton 4 2-4 10, C.J. Atkins 4 0-2 9, Jerome Ford 6 2-2 14, Jaidyn Bolds 6 1-2 17, Noah Witzel-Smith 2 1-1 5, Ronald Johnston 0 1-2 1, Justice Avery 1 0-0 3, Roseby Lubintis 0 0-0 0, Julius Lee 0 0-0 0, Kenny Buchanan 0 0-0 0, Sencere Spriddle 0 0-0 0, Cody Murphy 0 0-0 0. Totals 23 7-13 58.

Woodstown	9	9	14	17-	49
Timber Creek	14	6	19	19-	58

CUMBERLAND 67, SCHALICK 45
CUMBERLAND (6-19): Kaleb Green 12, Josh Davis 9, Michael Hollis 8, Major Martin-Dunn 12, Pat Crawford 6, Kamal Branch 8, Dumajze Cartwright 2, Jaden Brown 4, Sincere Sadler 1, Khalif Dawkins 5.
SCHALICK (7-18): Reggie Allen 1 5-9 7, Nylan Sutton 8 1-6 17, Jamari Whitley 2 0-0 4, Sherrod Jones 2 3-4 8, Kenneth Bartee 1 0-0 2, Sean Kelly 2 3-6 7. Totals 16 12-25 45.

Cumberland	18	16	16	17-	67
Schalick	4	6	17	18-	45

WILDWOOD 86, PENNSVILLE 35
PENNSVILLE (2-22): Daniel Knight 2 1-2 6, Mason O’Brien 3 0-0 8, Cole Johnston 0 0-0 0, Adrian Alleyne 2 0-0 5, Jacob Miller 2 0-0 6, Gavin Spears 2 0-0 5, Logan Hill 1 1-2 4, C.J. McDevitt 0 1-2 1, Noah Owen 0 0-0 0, J.P. Laughrey 0 0-0 0. Totals 12 3-6 35.
WILDWOOD (8-15): Eric Jordan 5 0-0 10, Nolan Mawhinney 8 1-1 20, Trevor Troiano 2 0-0 6, Vinny Sweeney 3 0-0 7, Jordan Dozier 0 0-0 0, Daniel Benichou 3 0-0 7, Gianni Troiano 4 0-0 9, Justice Santiago 1 0-0 2, Brian Cunniff 6 2-2 14, Sammy Santiago 1 0-0 2, Jeff Knight 1 1-2 3, Jack Fullerton 3 0-0 6. Totals 37 4-5 86.

Pennsville	5	7	16	7-	35
Wildwood	21	22	26	17-	86

GCIT 86, SALEM TECH 18

Salem Tech (0-21)	3	3	9	3-	18
GCIT (11-14)	16	25	23	22-	86